[dropcap]Currently[/dropcap], Lighthorse officers are cross-deputized with 47 agencies located within the 13 counties that make up the Chickasaw Nation. Cross-deputization agreements work to eliminate jurisdictional uncertainties and deliver more efficient law enforcement services, explains Choate. The Lighthorse officers routinely help other agencies with law enforcement matters within jurisdiction through the cross commissions.
“We have also made a significant investment in our young people,” says Choate. “We are providing the tools and guidance our young people need to lead successful lives and become the leaders of tomorrow.”
Ways that The Chickasaw Nation is accomplishing this is through camps and academies, such as the Chickasaw Nation Aviation and Space Academy and the Chickasaw Summer Arts Academy. These camps enable students to make that vital connection between education and a career. Camps and academies and other programs provide the opportunity for young people to learn directly from accomplished professionals.
The Cherokee Nation also has programs in place to help the youth of the community.
In March 2015, 16 school districts that fall outside the Cherokee Nation’s jurisdiction in Tulsa, Rogers, Mayes, Wagoner and Muskogee counties received tribal motor vehicle tag funds. Each year the tribe allocated to schools 38 percent of its revenue from car tags sales. Previously, the tribe disbursed funds only to schools located within the tribe’s jurisdictional area and a two-mile buffer zone along the jurisdictional boundary. In 2014, 91 schools received car tag funding from the tribe. This year that number rose to 107.
Also rising is the amount of money to be disbursed. According to CN Education Services, the amount of tag revenue from the expanded five counties for fiscal year 2014 was approximately $1.5 million, which increased the total school funding to $4 million.
“Oklahoma is our home, and our success is the state’s success,” says Baker. “We are proud partners with the state of Oklahoma and hundreds of county and municipal governments. We strive to continually raise the level of hope in Oklahoma – hope for a better and brighter future. The Cherokee Nation plays a critical role in ensuring Oklahoma remains a great place to live and raise a family. We proudly reinvest our business profits in people, services and facilities to build a better and brighter future for today, tomorrow and the next seven generations.”
